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| - CP Mart, or Capitol Petrol, as it's also known, is an unaffiliated (i.e. not a chain) gas station on a seedier portion of already seedy East Washington Avenue whose claim to fame is some of the cheapest gas in the city. As we've all been brought up to know, you get what you pay for, and CP Mart is a grade-A example of what you get when you patronize a place like this. I've been going to this gas station at least once a week since they opened a few years ago, and in my case, that adds up to a lot of business: I drive round-trip about 500 miles per week, and that takes a lot of gas. NB: I just added it up and it's well over $2000 on one card since 11/09.
Because of its location and because of the relatively cheap price of a tank at CP Mart, I've been willing to put up with its downsides. Those include:
- Sharing the gas station with a broad spectrum of Madison's citizens, including those people who like to routinely tempt fate by rolling up to a gas station and proceeding to pump gas with cigarettes ablaze or, better yet, lighting up while at the pump;
- Surly patrons whose wrecked cars block two or more of the tightly packed pumps (three to a side for a total of six). When one young lady recently randomly parked in front of two pumps and the exit, a woman put her window down to ask her politely to move her vehicle. The young woman demured for a moment, contemplated the request and said, "Naw, I don't think I'll move," and ambled her way slowly into the convenience market inside. These are our country's next generation of adults. Be forewarned.
- A stinky gyros/fried food place whose unfortunate aroma permeates the entire convenience market and, on most days, the parking lot, too;
- The knowledge that pumping gas alone at the pump after hours will result in being hit up, possibly literally, for a cigarette or for money. After the first incident where I was blocked in at my car by an aggressive guy looking for bucks, I stayed inside the car while pumping here. After the second, I decided that going to this gas station after hours was a stupid idea.
And tonight, to cap it all off, I went to CP Mart to fill up a completely empty tank, a $50 proposition at the least. As I pulled into the parking lot, my cell phone rang and I pulled into one of the numerous empty parking stalls in front of the market/stank-ass gyros joint. I took the call while there before pumping gas and before driving off for safety reasons, but decided to go inside the market to make a small purchase while I was on the phone, too, out of a misguided sense of courtesy. After the manager(?) of the gyros joint repeatedly stepped outside of the market while on his own cell phone to glare at me/let his toddler daughter run wild into the parking lot before going to grab her and yank her back into the store, he finally sent out his cashier who had checked me out to come knock on my driver's side window in the empty parking lot and tell me I could not stay parked there while on the phone. Incredulous, I asked him to repeat himself because I could not believe that I was being hassled after already going in and making a purchase and on the verge of making yet another of my semi-weekly gas purchases at their pump.
Again, he told me that I had to move on and that I was not welcome to use my phone in my car with my car off in their empty parking lot for the store. At that point, I opened the door and asked him if he'd like me to also take my $50 gas purchase, made twice per week, elsewhere as well. At that point, the guy changed his tune, told me he'd only asked me to move my car closer to the building (what? I was abutting the cement end of the parking stall already - this made no sense), but it was really too late. All the other crap I put up with to save a few cents at the pump at this dump of a gas station are certainly not worth being treated like a vagrant because I didn't want to drive while on the phone.
So, don't bother patronizing this dive. Want to save on gas? Here are a few other options:
On the far east side, try East Washington Ave's Kelley's Mobil. Go inside and get one of their frequent flyer cards to save a whole bunch on the cost per gallon. It's worth your time and the costs goes down lower than even discount places like the one mentioned here.
On the near west side, there is the venerable U-Pump. Now under new ownership, they have ceased their erstwhile shady practices such as charging a different price for credit/debit and cash. They are competitive most of the time - and were the same price per gallon, $3.81, as CP Mart this evening.
On the far west side, consider the Costco member gas station. You will always save at this spot, and the staff is friendly and helpful. They will come over to your car and greet you, or give you a hand if needed.
Isthmus - the Willy St. BP has had good prices of late, and may go even lower to drum up business during the construction period.
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